When is the best time to change supplier...?

gino_76ph

i have signed-up for E-on last december 2009 and my monthly bill was £50. that is almost 2 months ago when my latest bill shot up to £180. i rung and they were able to lower it down to £120 but still i wasn't happy. basically from what i was told and from what i know they were doing an "estimated" meter reading (whenever no one's available) and that i (and the wife) have used up more than we should have. and this was summer time when all the heating were off and we were using less lighting and no new appliances were bought and we were at work mostly during the day.

i am fed up with their excuses and i want to change supplier. may i ask is this the "ideal" time to shift?

can i change anytime i want to isn't it?


thanks.

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Helena

Hi gino_76ph,

From your post it appears that your payments have been too low for the amount of energy that you have used, meaning your payments have now increased.

Have you been providing your meter readings to E.ON?

Check the T&C's of your tariff to see if there is a fee for changing supplier/tariff before the end date (if there is one).

Most people on here advise to switch a few weeks before your quarterly bill, (changing suppliers normally takes around 4-6 weeks) this way you will still receive discount on the quarterly bill and the final bill will only be for a couple of weeks, therefore, not missing out on so much discount.

I would suggest to pop your consumption details in to a comparsion site to check for better deals, but always use your usage in kWh (this is much more accurate) not your monthly £ amount.

Helena

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Helena

U-GET_Consultancy_Service wrote: »

Hi there,

Depending upon your contract, will determine whether or not you can switch. You say that you signed up in December '09, may I ask what length of contract this was for, because you maybe locked in still?

Hi,

It does appear that this customer is domestic, therefore, with E.ON they can switch at anytime they like, however, they may be charged a cancellation fee.

Helena

Premier_2

gino_76ph wrote: »

... may i ask is this the "ideal" time to shift?

can i change anytime i want to isn't it?


thanks.

According to Martin, now is the 'golden moment' to switch.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/you-switch-gas-electricity?dd

(However, a comment has been added to the article today suggesting prices may be on the move. See also here. The traffic lights may be changing soon)

However, if you currently have any outstanding debt with your current supplier, they may block an application.

dogshome

Hi gino_76PH - No matter which company you are with, if your 12 monthly Direct Debits don't cover your yearly use, you will face a big hike in monthly payments to cover the yearly use, plus, the debt you have accumulated.

The only way is to do your own homework to establish how many Kw of Gas and/or Electic you are using a year, then armed with these figures you can visit Switch sites to get the annual cost from all the suppliers.

You say you signed with Eon last December, so phone them and ask how many Kw you have used since, then if you add the figure from the 1st Bill you had, (Dec - Mar), this will give a good estimate
of your yearly use.

gino_76ph

why do i need to ask on how many Kw i used? will this help me in choosing the right supplier?

as far as i know i am not tied up to a "contract" with E-on. i just pay the £50 monthly i've arranged with them last december '09 then it just suddenly shot up to £180 the previous month.

whenever i wanht to switch to a different provider i go to known comparison websites. i am then being asked for the "name" of my electricity supply but i can't recall being asked about how many Kw i've used so far. or maybe my memory is not helping me.

basically from what i understood is that i am using more than i should or expected. which is utter false as it was summer then and no heatings were turned on, i only use A-grade light bulbs, no new electrical appliances have been bought (since starting in december) and i only work mostly dyring daytimes. how can E-on say that i am using more?

Premier_2

gino_76ph wrote: »

why do i need to ask on how many Kw i used? will this help me in choosing the right supplier?...

As per the advice already posted by Helena

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Helena wrote: »

...I would suggest to pop your consumption details in to a comparsion site to check for better deals, but always use your usage in kWh (this is much more accurate) not your monthly £ amount.

Helena

However, if your bills are all based on estimated redaings, any annual consumption figure from the supplier will likewise be estimated.

Best to use your own figures. You should have an accurate meter reading when you changed supplier (maybe you provided it yourself, see the initial bill) and take a current meter reading. Then make a suitable allowance for the 4-9 few weeks to get an annual figure.

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Helena

gino_76ph wrote: »

why do i need to ask on how many Kw i used? will this help me in choosing the right supplier?

as far as i know i am not tied up to a "contract" with E-on. i just pay the £50 monthly i've arranged with them last december '09 then it just suddenly shot up to £180 the previous month.

whenever i wanht to switch to a different provider i go to known comparison websites. i am then being asked for the "name" of my electricity supply but i can't recall being asked about how many Kw i've used so far. or maybe my memory is not helping me.

basically from what i understood is that i am using more than i should or expected. which is utter false as it was summer then and no heatings were turned on, i only use A-grade light bulbs, no new electrical appliances have been bought (since starting in december) and i only work mostly dyring daytimes. how can E-on say that i am using more?

Hi gino_76ph,

We would always advise customers to use the kWh usage not £ spend when using a comparison site, as this is much more accurate.

It does sound like your £50 payments per month have not been enough to cover the amount of energy that you have been using, this is the reason they have now increased.

Have you been providing your meter readings to E.ON on a regular basis? or have they been estimated?

If you are disputing your usage, making sure your account is now billed up to accurate meter readings, I would advise you to contact E.ON to go through this.

However, from your first post it does sound like you have received a catch up bill (where your account has been underestimated for a while, then an accurate bill produced a balance) and the payments have now been set to cover your outstanding balance and you ongoing consumption.

Helena

gino_76ph

i must admit i havn't been giving much of my own readings to E-on. why? because everytime they ring i'm at work. and i'm so buisy at work that i sometimes miss to read the letters i'm receiving. but it's not entirely my fault is it?

estimated readings for me would not necessarily mean higher bills.

the bottom line here is i don not agree with the raise in our household electricity bills simply because we do not use much as we are using...

i'm really angry....!!!!!:(

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Helena

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Helena wrote: »

If you are disputing your usage, making sure your account is now billed up to accurate meter readings, I would advise you to contact E.ON to go through this.

Helena

Hi gino_76ph,

As I said in a previous post, if you feel there is an error with your usage, you must contact E.ON, the best thing to do would be to take a weeks worth of meter readings and list your appliances and heating system.

If your account is now billed up to an accurate meter reading that matched the reading on your meter, chances are the usage is correct and this energy will have been used.

Have you checked the tariff you are on, to make sure this is right for you and you are getting the best deal you can?

I would advise you to speak to E.ON and go through your account, there is also an energy efficiency department, they are very good at helping customer reduce the usage and advising how to use appliances effectively.

Helena

rsykes2000

gino_76ph wrote:

i must admit i havn't been giving much of my own readings to E-on. why? because everytime they ring i'm at work. and i'm so buisy at work that i sometimes miss to read the letters i'm receiving. but it's not entirely my fault is it?

Yes, it is *entirely* your fault and it's a very lazy attitude. Are you seriously suggesting that once every 3 months when they send the estimated bill that you can't spare what is literally 2-3 minutes to send them (via automated phone call or via their website) your actual readings ?

gino_76ph wrote:

estimated readings for me would not necessarily mean higher bills.

It should do. If they don't know what you use, they have to estimate your meter reading. If when they actually get to read your meter you have used more than their estimate, your monthly payments will go up. This can be avoided by spending 2-3 minuites every 3 months, as above.

gino_76ph wrote:

the bottom line here is i don not agree with the raise in our household electricity bills simply because we do not use much as we are using...

i'm really angry....!!!!!:(

You should be angry. However, you should be angry at yourself. If you'd been giving them actual readings, your monthly payment would have been more than the 50 quid but less than the 120 as there wouldn't have been a large underpayment you have to catch up with.